This page is for reading recommendations. Please add a review when you find a great fantasy "read."
BREATHE by Cliff McNish - Jack's father died recently, so his mother has rented an old house where they can vacation. She is hoping the new location will give them a fresh start, as long as they can keep Jack's asthma under control. It turns out this old house has ghosts whom Jack can see and talk to. There are four dead children who are excited to be able to visit with Jack. But there is also the ghost mother, who desperately wants a child to love her. How far is she willing to go to make that happen with Jack? This is very creepy story, so if you like that kind of thing, you will enjoy being scared by this book!
DEEP AND DARK AND DANGEROUS by Mary Downing Hahn - I'm putting this book in Fantasy instead of Mystery because in typical Hahn fashion, the ghost in this story really exists. Forty years ago, there was a boating accident, and a young girl drowned in a Maine lake. Somehow, Ali's mother and Aunt Dulcie were involved, but neither will admit it or even own up to knowing about the incident. Things cannot be ignored when Ali, Dulcie and Dulcie's little daughter go to spend the summer at the old family cottage on the lake and a very strange, weird girl appears and disappears to interact strangely with the children. Yes, it's the ghost of the girl who drowned all those years ago, and she is twisted and angry. Find out what happens. Will the situation resolve without anyone getting hurt?
THE RED PYRAMID by Rick Riordan - This first book of the new series, The Kane Chronicles, tells the story of the Kane family through the eyes of Carter and Sadie, the children of Egyptologist Dr. Julius Kane and his late wife. Since their mother's death, the children have been living apart. Carter has been home-schooled and living on the road with his father. Sadie has been living with her maternal grandparents in London. When the book opens, they are together as family. Dad is acting suspicious and then something goes awry during a visit to the British Museum. Is there another world where Egyptian gods exist? Has it broken through to this one? Read this book to be transported to a magic land where life as we know it is at stake. A real nail biter.
THE UNFINISHED ANGEL by Sharon Creech - This story tells how an angel and child team up to rescue a group of homeless orphans. It's a miracle that brings the whole village together. I love the way the angel speaks. Read this book to see what I mean.
WHERE THE MOUNTAIN MEETS THE MOON by Grace Lin - Minli and her parents are barely getting by. Ma sighs with discontent, while Ba entertains with stories of Chinese folklore. Minli runs away on a quest to find the Old Man of the Moon to ask him to improve her family's fortune. Along the way she meets many people who are also dealing with difficulties. As she gets in touch with all her family DOES have, she helps others in a way that ends up benefitting everyone. A great story for those who like stories! Read it, and you will see what I mean.
GOOSE GIRL by Shannon Hale - A princess has been promised in marriage to the prince of a neighboring kingdom as a political move. She is on her way to the new kingdom when her lady-in-waiting and guards mutiny and attack her. She manages to escape and eventually makes her way to her destination, but hides out as a goose tender. Meanwhile, her former lady-in-waiting passes herself off as the princess. The real princess is in peril; the mutineers will kill her if they find her. But it's not realistic to stay hidden for the rest of her life. And what about the boy she meets while herding her flock? Can she trust him? I could not put this book down. Surprises came often to make this a favorite.
HAWKSONG by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes - Two kingdoms have been at war for so long, no one remembers why it all started. The crown princess of the hawk shape shifters has had enough war when she visits a battlefield and sits with a dying young man from the "enemy" camp of snake shape shifters. She proposes that she and the crown prince of the snake shape shifters marry to unite their people and end the war. She doesn't bargain for falling in love with him, though. This was another one that drew me in. I have even read all of the sequels!
This page is for reading recommendations. Please add a review when you find a great fantasy "read."
BREATHE by Cliff McNish - Jack's father died recently, so his mother has rented an old house where they can vacation. She is hoping the new location will give them a fresh start, as long as they can keep Jack's asthma under control. It turns out this old house has ghosts whom Jack can see and talk to. There are four dead children who are excited to be able to visit with Jack. But there is also the ghost mother, who desperately wants a child to love her. How far is she willing to go to make that happen with Jack? This is very creepy story, so if you like that kind of thing, you will enjoy being scared by this book!
DEEP AND DARK AND DANGEROUS by Mary Downing Hahn - I'm putting this book in Fantasy instead of Mystery because in typical Hahn fashion, the ghost in this story really exists. Forty years ago, there was a boating accident, and a young girl drowned in a Maine lake. Somehow, Ali's mother and Aunt Dulcie were involved, but neither will admit it or even own up to knowing about the incident. Things cannot be ignored when Ali, Dulcie and Dulcie's little daughter go to spend the summer at the old family cottage on the lake and a very strange, weird girl appears and disappears to interact strangely with the children. Yes, it's the ghost of the girl who drowned all those years ago, and she is twisted and angry. Find out what happens. Will the situation resolve without anyone getting hurt?
THE RED PYRAMID by Rick Riordan - This first book of the new series, The Kane Chronicles, tells the story of the Kane family through the eyes of Carter and Sadie, the children of Egyptologist Dr. Julius Kane and his late wife. Since their mother's death, the children have been living apart. Carter has been home-schooled and living on the road with his father. Sadie has been living with her maternal grandparents in London. When the book opens, they are together as family. Dad is acting suspicious and then something goes awry during a visit to the British Museum. Is there another world where Egyptian gods exist? Has it broken through to this one? Read this book to be transported to a magic land where life as we know it is at stake. A real nail biter.
THE UNFINISHED ANGEL by Sharon Creech - This story tells how an angel and child team up to rescue a group of homeless orphans. It's a miracle that brings the whole village together. I love the way the angel speaks. Read this book to see what I mean.
WHERE THE MOUNTAIN MEETS THE MOON by Grace Lin - Minli and her parents are barely getting by. Ma sighs with discontent, while Ba entertains with stories of Chinese folklore. Minli runs away on a quest to find the Old Man of the Moon to ask him to improve her family's fortune. Along the way she meets many people who are also dealing with difficulties. As she gets in touch with all her family DOES have, she helps others in a way that ends up benefitting everyone. A great story for those who like stories! Read it, and you will see what I mean.
GOOSE GIRL by Shannon Hale - A princess has been promised in marriage to the prince of a neighboring kingdom as a political move. She is on her way to the new kingdom when her lady-in-waiting and guards mutiny and attack her. She manages to escape and eventually makes her way to her destination, but hides out as a goose tender. Meanwhile, her former lady-in-waiting passes herself off as the princess. The real princess is in peril; the mutineers will kill her if they find her. But it's not realistic to stay hidden for the rest of her life. And what about the boy she meets while herding her flock? Can she trust him? I could not put this book down. Surprises came often to make this a favorite.
HAWKSONG by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes - Two kingdoms have been at war for so long, no one remembers why it all started. The crown princess of the hawk shape shifters has had enough war when she visits a battlefield and sits with a dying young man from the "enemy" camp of snake shape shifters. She proposes that she and the crown prince of the snake shape shifters marry to unite their people and end the war. She doesn't bargain for falling in love with him, though. This was another one that drew me in. I have even read all of the sequels!